Carbon monoxide poisoning kills 10 in Beijing
At least 10 people died in Beijing this week from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, state media reported on Wednesday.
Neighbours found five university students unconscious in a rented flat in the city’s Chaoyang district on Monday.The students were rushed to Chaoyang Hospital emergency department but were reported dead on arrival.
Doctors said at least three of the students were victims of carbon monoxide poisoning from fumes released from a punctured gas water heater in their bathroom.
The Harbin Medical University students were working as interns at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital.
In the same district on Tuesday, a family of five, including a seven-year-old boy, was found dead from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning. Neighbours said a coal heater was installed in a corner of their apartment and investigators found a carbon monoxide detector unplugged.
Police are investigating both cases.
Many residents living in poorer or rural areas still use coal boilers to keep warm during harsh Beijing winters that can see temperatures drop as low as minus 15 degrees Celsius.